Moments
by Skoozyy
Summary: A collection of one-shots about Ritsu and Mitsuru.
1. One Night

He had always been very strict about not staying the night. His mother's influence reigned strong. It would be 'improper'. Mitsuru had rolled her eyes when he had said that. She was a modern woman. She'd had boyfriends stay the night before. Sometimes whole weekends. Ritsu had looked a little hurt when she said that, but didn't say anything as he continued to chop spring onions for dinner. She felt bad then.

She was his first girlfriend. She knew that. He had been raised in a very traditional way. Plus, he was Ritsu. A frenzied ball of insecurity, anxiety and not-enough-ness. She could hardly say it didn't fit his character. But nonetheless, it was archaic.

"A man can't stay the night until after marriage?" She had joked, handing him the soy sauce.

"Yes." He said simply, pouring heavy drops into the soup.

She had thought the curse could be at the center of it. He was ashamed and scared of it. He had only transformed in front of her twice, and each time afterwards, he had looked at her, searching for disgust or rejection. He didn't find it. She could accept it, even if she didn't understand it. Even though it had turned her whole view of the world and what was possible upside down. She could accept it because it was him.

He had told her that Hatori had a skill, a kind of hypnosis. The first time she had seen him transform had been an accident. She asked if he would have ever told her, if not for that misstep, her falling over her own feet behind him, walking along a deserted street late at night. She'd had too much wine that night, but her heart had been singing. She had been watching him from a pace behind, watching his long hair frame his face like golden sunbeams. She'd admired the curve of his chin, his graceful neck. He was so beautiful, so handsome. The moonlight illuminated his profile, danced in his kind eyes. She had thanked the gods for him, for being brought him and being allowed this.

And then she had tripped. Felt the solid warm weight of his back for a fraction of a second, and then nothing. She fell to the ground, grazing her palms on the concrete. Her ankle was twisted and painful. Ritsu was gone. Except he wasn't actually gone. He had transformed into a monkey. A centuries old curse that afflicted his family, he explained later, hovering at her front door, visibly shaking.

Hatori could get rid of this, he said then. He could make it so that evening never happened, at least for her. She could be made to forget.

She had cried then. Big, heavy tears that came from somewhere deep within her. She cried into her palms until her hands were wet, the tears trickled down her arms, splashed the parquet floor. She received no comfort, because Ritsu had none to give. He was filled with anguish, but he didn't trust that reaching out to her, touching her, could be what she wanted now.

In the end, she made him. She had grabbed his wrist and forced his hand onto her head.

"Comfort me, dammit!" She said, like a child. Or like a drunken fool, was probably more accurate. Even though she was shocked, even though she felt like she was in some weird dream, she wanted it to be him that brought her out of it. She still wanted him.

He stroked her hair, her cheek. His hand was trembling, but it was warm. He was still there, and she was not going to push him away.

But that had been months ago, more than half a year. It had been more than a month since the curse had been broken. He had told her he felt free. She, too, felt like a weight had been lifted, one that she hadn't known she had been carrying until it was gone. The possibilities opened up. The future was one without restraint and fear. On a more practical side, it was a future where they could have a relationship with everything that came along with that.

Except, not until marriage. She wanted to sigh, wanted to act out. She had daydreams when she was at work. She'd wear something provocative. He said she looked beautiful in anything, and she didn't think she owned anything that could be described as 'sexy'. But this was a daydream, so she could have whatever wardrobe she dreamt up. A short dress, soft to the touch, dangerously low-cut. She wouldn't wear a bra underneath. The teasing sense of _almost_ would be too much for him.

She would sit close beside him on the couch. Her bare leg would be against his. She'd take his hand, put it softly on her thigh, encourage it upwards, under the hem of her dress. She liked to think that she would make him flustered. He would start to protest weakly, something about _was this okay_, and she would silence him with a kiss.

She would kiss him gently at first, teasingly, light butterfly kisses. Then she would make it deeper, more insistent. Her lips was move against his, encouraging him to kiss her with an open mouth, allowing her tongue entrance. Somewhere in this, he would become overcome. His protests would fall away because he wanted this, _oh god, he wanted this_.

His hands would take her hips, uncharacteristically assertive. She would move to straddle his lap, feeling his hardening bulge between her legs, against the fabric of her underwear (a sexy lacy affair, unlike any of the plain cotton briefs she actually owned). She would lace her arms around his neck, moving her lips down to his jawline, peppering it with kisses. Then she would move down to his neck, taking her time to kiss a steady path downwards. She'd feel his pulse beating underneath her, rapid and excited. It would spur her on.

She would rock ever so ever so slowly against him, loving the feel of his hardness (and it would be unmistakably that by this point) beneath her. She would hear him groan, his head fall back, his eyes closed in pleasure and torment, a heady mixture of the two.

"Do you want this?" She'd ask, whispering into his ear, tucking his long golden hair behind it. She would take his lobe between her teeth and swirl the tip of her tongue against its softness. She'd kiss his ear, in no doubt as to what his answer would be.

"M-Mitsuru," He would manage, groaning once more as her rocked her hips over his lap with more friction, "P-please."

And then-

"Mitsuru-san, did you get the email about the meeting? They've moved the time up to midday."

Her boss' voice broke through her daydream, and she colored instinctively, as if he would know just by looking at her what she had been thinking about.

"Uh," She stammered, "I didn't know. Thank you for informing me." She bowed her head respectfully, as well as to hide her flushed cheeks.

She ended up not finishing work until 9 o'clock on that day. There had been a deadline that she'd had to meet, and her distraction during the day certainly hadn't helped her normal efficiency. She had texted Ritsu that she wouldn't be back in time to go for dinner with him like they'd been planning. He hadn't replied, but he understood how important her work was to her.

She came through the door into her apartment and slipped off her shoes. Her muscles felt tight and aching from where she had been sat at her desk all day. She caught sight of herself in the mirror as she passed. There were bags under her eyes that rivaled Ritsu's mother's. She vowed that, this coming weekend, she wasn't going to get out of bed. She would watch Netflix and finally get around to a book or two from her to-read pile, which was currently threatening to tip over in her bedroom.

It was only as she was about to go through to the living room that she did a double-take to see if she had just seen what she thought she had. A pair of men's shoes, black and carefully polished, aligned perfectly straight against the step. She grinned at the sight of them, praising herself inwardly for her boldness in giving Ritsu a key to her apartment a few weeks back.

Coming through into the living room and open-plan kitchen, there was a bowl of noodles, covered over, and Tupperware containing side dishes on the counter-top. Recently washed pots, pans, knives and a chopping board were all neatly stacked on the draining board.

She looked over to the living room, and her heart filled with warmth to see him there. Ritsu was lying on her couch, slightly curled to fit his whole frame. His head was on a cushion, his mouth a little bit open, and as she went over to him quietly, she could hear the peaceful sound of his deep, slow breathing.

She had never seen him asleep before, never seen the way that his eyelashes brushed his cheek, or the gentle expressions he made in his dreams. In that moment, she didn't think it was possible to love anyone more than she did him.

She came to kneel in front of him, content to just watch him, but her movement must have roused him. His eyes opened, sleepy and dazed.

"Mitsuru?" He said, his voice heavy with the remnants of sleep.

"Hello, you." She said, not being able to help but smile at his expression of slight confusion, it was so cute. She leaned forward and kissed him lightly. His face was so warm, so inviting to be beside.

In the next instant, it seemed like he had collected some of his bearings, and made to sit up. Mitsuru moved herself to be sat alongside him, length-ways on the sofa. She turned her body towards him, pushing him back down to lay beside her. She nestled her face into his chest. She could hear his heartbeat, slightly elevated as she touched him. The sound soothed her, and the warmth of his body made her drowsy.

"I'm sorry," He said, his voice quiet, "I didn't mean to fall asleep. It was most improper of me, in your apartment, to let myself-"

"Let's just sleep," She said, "Just this once, okay?"

She placed her hand on his abdomen, curling her fingers into the fabric of his shirt, and let her eyes close. She could hear hesitations building in his throat, as he tried to stutter out words to explain why he shouldn't, why it was improper, all the harsh words he had heard from his childhood up until now about modern people and loose morals circling his head.

But this certainly didn't feel improper. It felt the most natural, perfect thing in the world, to fall asleep with Ritsu's heartbeat under her fingertips.

It took him a moment longer before he seemed to realize the same. Hesitantly and oh so carefully, he placed his arm over her waist, drawing her in closer towards him so that their bodies were pressed against each other in a way that would never have been possible only a short time before. She felt him kiss her forehead and whisper a goodnight into her ear.

She fell asleep, and only moments later, he did too. His arm grew heavier over her, holding her to him, and the sounds of their sleeping breaths mingled.

It wasn't quite what she had imagined for the first night they would spend together, but for now, it was enough.


	2. A Glowing Thing

It had probably been a mistake to ask Kagura. While a dear friend and relative, the smirk that came to her lips before he had even finished his question informed him he was about to be thoroughly teased.

She raised her index finger up to her lips, making a sound as if she were seriously thinking about it.

"Do I think that Hatori-san is handsome?" She repeated back to him, "Hmm, what an interesting question. I haven't thought about it before."

"It's fine. No. Nevermind." Ritsu said, "I don't know why I was asking. Silly of me. I was just…" He trailed off helplessly. He wasn't going to patch over it that easily, and he knew it.

"I suppose he must be," Kagura continued, as if she hadn't heard him. She took a sip of her tea, taking her time. "Yes. From whatever perspective you look at it, he is handsome."

"Ah." Ritsu took a gulp of his own tea, searching about in his mind for a different topic to divert the conversation.

"Do you have a crush, Ritsu? Is that why you ask?" Kagura said conversationally.

"N-no. No, not on Hatori nii-san. Although I do admire him, but-"

"Not on Hatori _specifically_?" She cut him off, "Hmm. Curiouser and curiouser. You really are a riddle, Ritchan."

She grinned. He blushed and looked down at his hands in his lap. He knew it was silly, ridiculous, even more so to say out loud. It was just that the thought had plagued him ever since his visit to Shigure-niisan's house last Sunday. It was as if to verbalize it, he might be able to dissipate his feeling of unease. It was like a small beast had taken up residence in his mind, gnawing away at him.

Kagura looked up and smiled at the waiter as he delivered their meals to the table. The young man grinned back, and Ritsu thought he caught him wink at Kagura as he turned and walked away.

"Ugh, so cheap." She said in disdain, picking up a fork to start stabbing at her salad. "I can't stand sleazy guys like that."

"N-no. It's very forward." Ritsu replied, hoping for a second that Kagura had been distracted from their previous conversation, but his hopes were almost immediately dashed.

"A real gentleman like Hatori-san would never act like that."

"No. No, he wouldn't." Ritsu agreed reluctantly, "Hatori-niisan has exemplary manners."

Kagura appeared to pick up on the dejection in his voice.

"Okay." She said, "I'll stop now. Tell me what's up."

It had been a coincidence, really. Shigure had called him, claiming panic and a need for help. Of course, he was neither actually panicking or in need of help, but it was a way to get Ritsu to go over to his house and help distract him further from his work.

"Do you have a deadline soon?" Ritsu had asked. Shigure yawned and denied it from his position lounging on the veranda. This was quickly disproven when, on being sent out to buy mochi from the convenience store ("I need sugar for my creative juices to flow!"), Ritsu almost bumped straight into Mitsuru on the doorstep .

"Ah, hello," He said, bowing quickly, heart hammering from shock and… something else. Excitement, perhaps? He was undoubtedly pleased to see Shigure's editor again. He had thought about her often since they had met the first time. Although they'd exchanged numbers ("In case Sensei comes to you to hide"), he hadn't heard from her since, and he most definitely hadn't sent her a message. After all, it wasn't that she wanted to be in contact with him, only that he was an access point to Shigure.

"Ritsu-san, hello!" She said, bowing back, but her eyes had a darkness to them. "I'm here to collect pages from Sensei. Is he home?"

Both of them heard the unmistakable sound of a slamming screen door somewhere in the near-distance, and Mitsuru's face immediately fell.

"Of course." She muttered under her breath.

"Um, he was out on the veranda, but now I'm not sure if he…" Ritsu trailed off, and Mitsuru crossed her chest at the dull inevitability of it.

"I know. I stupidly told him I was coming today, so what can I expect, really?"

"I can try and help you, but I need to go and buy mochi first."

Mitsuru nodded.

"It seems like this is our pattern for meeting, doesn't it?" She said, sighing. Before Ritsu could reply or even take in what she had said, he felt a surge of alarm as a dark colored car swept up to the house. It didn't come particularly close, but Ritsu found himself unthinkingly reaching out a protective arm to move Mitsuru out of harm's way.

"Ah, I'm so sorry." He said, blushing and bowing an apology, "I shouldn't have … That was unnecessary. I'm so sorry, I-"

Mitsuru glanced back from Ritsu to the car. She seemed surprised, then laughed a little. It was a good 10 meters away.

"A little unnecessary maybe, but thank you nonetheless." She said.

The car door opened, and a familiar figure stepped out.

"Hatori-niisan!" Ritsu said, bowing as the man approached, his height and general composure lending him an impressive aura.

"Ritsu-kun," Hatori said, "Shigure called me… Honda-san has hurt herself?"

Tohru and the boys had gone out a couple of hours earlier, after they had managed to convince her that she did indeed need new socks, and couldn't continue darning her existing ones indefinitely.

"N-no. No, I don't think so. Honda-san isn't home, I don't think."

Hatori crossed his arms over his chest.

"That man." He said in a low voice.

"I think he might be hiding now. I'm here to pick up his latest chapter, so I doubt he will be easy to find." Mitsuru said.

Hatori took in the young woman, her short brown hair and pale blue skirt suit.

"I don't believe we've met," Hatori said, "You're his editor?"

"Uh, yes. I'm Ito Mitsuru. Pleased to meet you." She inclined her head respectfully. Ritsu felt a sensation in his chest as he saw a warm pink blush spread over her cheeks. He had the sudden urge to say something, to draw attention away from Hatori, but he had nothing he could say.

"The pleasure is mine," Hatori said, as if it were easy to just say things like that, "I'm Sohma Hatori. I'm the doctor for the Sohma family."

That seemed unnecessary to add, Ritsu thought, and then felt immediately ashamed. Hatori was someone with many achievements. Simply saying them wasn't wrong. It was pathetic that he was thinking this way. As if Mitsuru would, if not for Hatori, be impressed by him or think him someone worthy of thinking about and noticing.

"Wow. It seems there are so many Sohmas, you must be permanently busy." Mitsuru said conversationally. "It feels like every time I come here, I meet a new Sohma."

"That's unfortunately very accurate." Hatori said with a sigh. Mitsuru smiled. Ritsu's heart dropped to somewhere in the region of his stomach.

"How is your ankle now?" Hatori asked, seeming to remember that Ritsu was also there.

"Oh, f-fine. Yes, fine. Thank you. I'm sorry to have been a burden."

"Did you hurt yourself, Ritsu-san?" Mitsuru asked, "What happened?"

He really didn't want to talk about being on the roof of Shigure's house, threatening to throw himself off. In fact, he really didn't want to be in this conversation at all anymore. If he could just disappear, cease to exist…

"Just a simple twist, wasn't it?" Hatori said calmly, "Nothing much to worry about."

Ritsu looked at him, wondering how he had sensed that it wasn't a story Ritsu wanted to share. He was so intuitive and skilled with people, without people even realizing that he was doing it. Ritsu would give the world to be half the man that Hatori was. He felt doubly bad for having thought negatively of his kind, talented, wonderful relative.

"That's a relief," Mitsuru said. She smiled softly at Ritsu, before suddenly shouting, "Sensei!"

"Ah, Miichan!" Shigure, bright and chirpy, emerged from the vicinity of some bushes to the side of the house, "Haa-san! What a wonderful surprise to see two of my favourite people together like this."

Mitsuru immediately approached him, hand outstretched for the manuscript. Shigure looked down at her hand, as if uncomprehending, and reached out to shake it.

"Sensei!" She shouted again.

Hatori rolled his eyes.

"I had better help her deal with him." He said to Ritsu, striding off. Shigure danced from foot to foot for a moment, but taking off at a sprint around the side of the house.

"Sensei, please don't do this!" Mitsuru wailed, following after him, with Hatori following sternly behind.

Even his back profile was good, Ritsu couldn't help but notice. He had broad shoulders under his smart clothes. He was a proper man, unquestionably. One whom people would respect, would fall for. It was just inevitable.

Kagura listened right to the end of Ritsu's explanation, head cocked to one side. When he fell silent, she too was silent for a moment, as if taking it in. Then, she grinned broadly.

"I'm so happy for you," She said, reaching across the table and taking his wrist, "Ritchan, you have a crush!"

She laughed, squeezing his wrist.

"That's adorable. I bet she's cute. Do you have any pictures? I want to meet her."

"N-no. No, you misunderstand me! I was just asking about Hatori, because-"

"Because you're worried that… What did you say her name was? Mitsuru. That Mitsuru will like Hatori, not you?"

"No, that's not it! Not at all. I could never think… It would be an insult to Mitsuru if someone such as me thought of her… It's impossible." He stammered out.

"And yet," Kagura let go of him, and spread her hands out demonstratively, "Here we are."

It wasn't that Kagura was wrong, but Ritsu hadn't thought of it that way. It truly couldn't be that he had enough arrogance to presume to like someone. He was completely unlikable. It would be a burden on them. Mitsuru would laugh at him if she ever found out, if she ever thought that… He felt an ache in his chest.

"Look, Ritchan. There's nothing wrong with having a crush. It's a wonderful thing, you know? You just have to put yourself out there, and you must never, ever give up." Kagura said, "If you're meant to be together, you will be. There could be a thousand men as handsome as Hatori-san, but if it's you she likes, it won't matter at all."

As they finished their meal together, their conversation turned to smaller, easier, less embarrassing topics. They parted ways on the street outside the cafe, the bright spring sunshine making it impossible for their moods not to be lifted.

"Remember, Ritchan," Kagura said, holding his gaze seriously as they parted, "Have courage. And let me know any gossip!"

She laughed jovially a she walked off, the arms of her cat backpack swinging merrily as she went.

Walking back to his apartment in the opposite direction, Ritsu had time to consider what Kagura had said. Although it was undoubtedly colored by her own experience of a one-sided love for Kyo, it still felt like something he wanted to hold onto. It was ridiculous and irresponsible, reckless even, to let himself feel this way, to convince himself that there might be a glimmer of a possibility that it wasn't in vain.

But couldn't he, just this one, have this? He could keep it in his heart. He wouldn't say anything to anyone, wouldn't let himself cause a problem for anyone, least of all Mitsuru. If he had this secret, glowing thing, just kept inside of himself, couldn't he?

He didn't know the answer. It felt shameful that someone like him would have the audacity to like someone like her. Maybe a better question would be, could he make himself stop?

As he was coming up to his building, he heard his phone beep in his bag. He pulled it out distractedly, glancing down at the screen, and his heart skipped a beat.

_I hope you don't mind me texting you. It was very nice to see you again the other day. Would you like to have tea together this Friday? I know a cute shop we could go to. Let me know ~ Mitsuru_


End file.
